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Wednesday, 13 May 2015

Wednesday.

This morning we motored into the depths of wildest Suffolk to have lunch with friends. After lunch our host showed us his latest acquisition., which he'd received this morning. I asked him if I might take a photograph of it to use as a Mystery Object? "It's in dreadful condition" he said, "and there's an awful lot of work to be done on it before it's fit to be seen. Tell you what Mike. I'll get you one out that you can take a photo of. It's not quite as early as this one, but, it's in a lot better condition ."

So, that's what we did. Here is the photo above. The object is on the seat of a modern garden chair. Please try and guess what it is, where it was made, roughly when it was made, and the material of which it is made.
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On our way home we stopped for petrol on the forecourt of a garage, and found ourselves parked next to the above photographed, magnificently preserved, 1930s Rolls Royce motor car. As an old uncle of Ann's used to say :- "The things you see when you're out without your gun!"

10 comments:

Hi Mike, I believe that is a Japanese Edo period dou (chest armour) of lacquered riveted iron on leather panels with a kusazuri (apron) comprising 3 laced columns of 4 lacquered iron plates hanging from the bottom of the dou.

I've just published Crowbard's opinion on yesterday's mystery object. It is part of a Japanese armour. The breastplate and tassets. It is made of iron with lacquered inlay, held together with dark blue (silk, I think) lacing. The only thing I can add to Crowbard's description (and I think I'm being a bit pedantic here) is that it's of the early Edo period, that is, it dates from (by our dating) circa 1700. It never ceases to amaze me what things people become 'expert'in. A year or so ago we called on the same couple and he put aside an area of Japanese chain mail, which he'd made to restore an armour with the some of the mail missing. He looked like someone putting their knitting aside to be sociable. I asked him how much he'd made that day? "Oh, only a couple of rows" he said, "It's complex work, Japanese chain mail, and slow going".

Mike and Ann...thank you so much for the offer, but I must tell you that it is very difficult for us to leave the farm for any length of time. We have way to much going on over here. I'm sorry your health has given you limitations Mike. Keep busy and keep moving.